September 01, 2005

If you had any doubts as to what a joke Homeland Security and FEMA are*, or the truly clueless nature of the grand clusterfuck that is the Bush administration, those doubts have surely been erased by what has happened, and what continues to happen (and not happen) in New Orleans. The incompetence, the insensitivity to the suffering of others, the inability to take any responsibility, just boggles the mind. The government can’t be blamed for the hurricane, of course, but they are accountable for the preparations for such events and for carrying out rescue and relief afterwards. This administration has been all about telling us how they’re preparing to deal with disaster scenarios. Now that they’re presented with one, one that wasn’t exactly out of the blue, you can see what a crock of shit all of that is. Not to mention that if the Army Corps of Engineers had been given anywhere near the amount of funding they’d requested to shore up the levee system two years ago, this might not be the all-out debacle that it has become.

I can’t imagine what’s going through the minds of the members of the Louisiana National Guard currently stuck in Iraq. Disasters like this are precisely why we have a National Guard in the first place. This is what they’re trained for. And they’re stuck, many thousands of miles from home, trying not to get their asses blown off in a trumped up war, seeing what’s happening to their friends, neighbors and loved ones back home.

It fucks with my head something fierce, and I’ve never even been to Louisiana.

*I’m referring to the organizations. There are individuals within both groups who are busting their asses to help those in need. If only their bosses were so diligent.

January 12, 2005

We live about a mile away from the UW campus, maybe a mile and a half. Not very far, anyway. So perhaps you can imagine our dismay this morning when Science Girl opened the newspaper and found this story:UW Wants Bioterrorism Lab.

This is such a bad idea, and not just because it’s almost in our backyard. Take a look at the map from the story. Now compare it to this map. The area in question is right in that area labeled Portage Bay, which mean that a Level 3 biohazard lab is going to be right next to the U District, one of the more densely-populated neighborhoods in the city. Across Portage Bay to the south is Capitol Hill, which is quite possibly even more densely populated than the U District. If there were a breach of containment (and don’t bother telling me such a thing can’t happen, because we both know what utter bullshit that is), there would be a hell of a lot of people exposed to some really nasty shit.

This isn’t something that belongs in a large city. I was gonna say that it’s the kind of thing you do out in Hanford, but they haven’t got such a hot record either. I know this sort of research needs to be done, but why not do it somewhere where you’re not putting tens of thousands of people at risk?

Also, how smart is it to put such a facility in such a vulnerable spot? I left my tinfoil hat at home, but it strikes me that being that close to the water is something of a security risk. As Science Girl put it, what would stop someone from rowing up in a boat and firing a shoulder-launched missile into the building? Or driving up in an Oklahoma City-style truck bomb?

I think we’re gonna see a lot of local distaste for such a project. I hope it will be enough to kill it before it gets off the drawing board. Cross your fingers.

December 28, 2004

I’m breaking radio silence for a very good reason: Science Girl found a site listing contact information for charities providing disaster relief to areas affected by the tsunami this weekend. As bad as things are now, they’re only going to get worse in the coming days and weeks. If we all pitch in a little, we can help lessen the suffering of countless millions of people. This is the place: Network for Good. More contact info is available here.

It occurred to me today that some of you may be new to the political situation in the US as it stands now. Those of us who were of voting age during the 80s are experiencing a certain déjà vu these days. I am, anyway. But for some of you, I’m guessing, it’s a new and fairly ugly feeling. You wake up one morning and suddenly you have 59 million people on your shit list.

November 03, 2004

First off, I’ve seen a lot of people online making the terrible mistake of blaming what happened yesterday on Christians and people in the so-called “flyover states”. There are a great many good people getting dissed by association. We need to remember that there are a large number of Christians who actually follow the teachings of Christ rather than the twisted gospel of ignorance and hatred, just as there are people living in the South, the Southwest, and the Midwest who know the value of truth, justice, and the American way. They are upstanding citizens and we need to cherish them, not alienate them by lumping them together with their unenlightened neighbors and co-religionists. Those of us who stand in opposition to the continuing degradation of our nation need to pull together, because you can rest assured that the other side is doing just that. We take a day or two to mourn over lost possibilities and then we start working 24/7 to mitigate the damage.

As for those of you out there who cast a vote for Smirky & Snarly, let me address this next section to you.

I want to thank you for reaffirming my low opinion of humanity in general. Just when I think I can’t possibly despise my species any more, you guys come through with flying colors to remind me just how short-sighted we can be. I don’t care how you justify your vote to yourself, but I do want you to know that your spineless abject cowering before the fear-mongering of Bush & Co. has rendered you beneath contempt. You have sold out your heritage as Americans and are unworthy of being called such. I hope you enjoy your false sense of security along with those cheap gas prices, because neither one is going to last long.

November 02, 2004

Brothers and sisters, the time has come for each and every one of you to decide whether you are going to be the problem or you are going to be the solution. You must choose, brothers, you must choose. It takes 5 seconds, 5 seconds of decision. Five seconds to realize that it's time to move. It's time to get down with it. Brothers, it's time to testify and I want to know, are you ready to testify? Are you ready?

Then get up offa that thing, brothers and sisters! Get up off your ass and VOTE!

“According to figures compiled by the House Armed Services Committee and previously reported in The Seattle Times, there are plans to produce armor kits for at least 2,806 medium-weight trucks, but as of Sept. 17, only 385 of the kits had been produced and sent to Iraq. Armor kits were also planned for at least 1,600 heavyweight trucks, but as of mid-September just 446 of these kits were in Iraq.”

Anybody else see anything wrong there?

I used to work with a guy who’d served in the Navy. One of his favorite expressions was “You’re sorry? Sorry won’t feed the Admiral’s cat.” Or, in this case, armor the dead spc.’s Humvee.